Recycling of tissue residual rolls

ABSTRACT

In a method for recycling residual rolls having a material-carrying core of tubular shape with a hollow centre portion, the core is adapted to carry web material, such as tissue, that is rolled or wound onto the material-carrying core for facilitating handling and transportation of the web material. A device for carrying out this method has means for removing residual material from the core, means for collecting the residual material, and means for inserting residual material into the hollow centre portion of the core. Thereby, the core can be handled and transported with the residual material kept inside the core.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present U.S. application claims the benefit of Swedish patent application no. 1550991-2 filed on Jul. 7, 2015, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention subject matter relates to handling of material rolls and residual material recycling, and more precisely it concerns a method and a device for recycling residual web material rolls. The web material is paper, tissue or the like which is wound or wrapped in layers onto material rolls.

BACKGROUND

In the material handling industry, paper or tissue web material is often wrapped or wound onto cores to form large-diameter material rolls for facilitating logistics. These rolls are refined in the plant where they are manufactured, or they are transported to other plants for refinement/conversion into consumer adapted items. Generally, a material roll of this type comprises a tubular central core for carrying material being wound onto it.

After refinement, residual material is removed from the core and transported to recycling or destruction whilst the core is often deposited at a landfill. For the residual material and the core to be recycled or reused, respectively, these items need to be transported either within the plant or from the refinement plant to the manufacturing plant. This incurs a certain cost for the logistics involved. For the residual material to be recycled, it often needs to be compressed into a bale such that it can be transported. Furthermore, it is often a requirement to recycle different material varieties separately to achieve satisfactory outcome from the recycling process which creates further complications for the handling of the residual material. Since the importance of recycling is ever increasing in all manufacturing processes, there is a need for facilitated recycling of residual material rolls. Background art is reflected for instance in WO2008071904A1 and WO2014007725A1.

SUMMARY

It is an object of the present invention subject matter to provide an improved method and a device for recycling residual rolls, and more specifically residual web material rolls or even more specifically residual tissue rolls. This object is achieved by a concept which is improved over prior art and which is set forth in the appended independent claims; preferred embodiments thereof being defined in the related dependent claims.

Residual rolls consist of the unused remainder of web material rolls, having been unwound to the extent required in a process for refining the material into consumer adapted goods.

In a first aspect of the invention subject matter, a method for recycling residual rolls is provided. Each residual roll comprises a material-carrying core having a tubular shape with a hollow centre portion. The core is adapted to carry a web material, preferably soft materials such as tissue, that is rolled or wound onto the core for facilitating the transportation and handling of the web material. The method for recycling comprises the steps of: (i) removing any residual material left on the core after unwinding; (ii) collecting the residual material; and (iii) inserting collected residual material into the hollow centre portion of the core such that the residual material at least partly fills the hollow centre portion. The core can thereby function as a reservoir or container for the residual material, facilitating transport of the core and the residual material as a unit for recycling.

According to an embodiment, the method further comprises the step of sealing the ends of the core; such that residual material is kept securely inside the core during transportation, enabling for instance vertical stacking of the cores during transport.

The core ends may be sealed by application of a plastic film and/or by attaching a plug to each end of the core. The plastic film enables quick and cost effective sealing of the ends, while use of plugs is efficient in certain situations where distinct sealing is aimed at.

In an embodiment, one end of the core is sealed prior to insertion of the residual material such that the residual material is inserted from the other end of the core and pressed against the sealed end, wherein the second end is sealed after insertion of the residual material. Thereby, the residual material can be compressed to a certain extent in order to fit a larger amount of residual material in each core. Furthermore, the insertion of the residual material is facilitated since no residual material can be fall out through the sealed end during insertion.

The method may further comprise the step of shaping the residual material such that it is easily inserted into the hollow centre portion. The shaping of the residual material results in that the residual material obtains a more narrow shape such that it is easy to fit into the hollow centre portion of a core.

According to an embodiment, the residual material being inserted into the hollow centre portion is from a single residual roll, such that it is ensured that only one material variation or material type is inserted into the core which facilitates recycling of the material. The core may be labeled with information indicating what type of material it contains.

In a further embodiment, the residual material is inserted into the hollow centre portion of a core from which it previously was removed, thereby enabling a rapid process flow.

The residual material being inserted into the hollow centre portion of a core has preferably been removed from another core than the one it is inserted into. By inserting residual material from other rolls into a core, the handling process can be more flexible for instance by only inserting residual material into every third or fourth core.

The method preferably comprises the step of sorting the material removed from the core depending on the material type. Sorting of the material with respect to material type or variation ensures that only one type of material is inserted into each centre portion. This improves the result of the subsequent recycling of the material.

According to a further embodiment, the residual material being inserted into the hollow centre portion is from a plurality of rolls all having previously carried the same material. This way, it can be assured that only when sufficient residual material for filling a core has been collected will it be inserted into a core. Thereby, there is no need for inserting residual material into each core, which enhances the speed of the material handling process.

In a second aspect of the invention subject matter, there is provided a material roll handling device for carrying out the method. The device comprises: (i) means for removing any residual material from the roll after unwinding; (ii) means for collecting the residual material; and (iii) means for inserting the residual material into the hollow centre portion of the core, such that it is at least partially filled with residual material.

Preferably, the device further comprises means for sealing the ends of the core after insertion; such that the ends are securely closed during transport. The sealing means may comprise a plastic film and/or a plug attached to the associated core end.

In an embodiment, the collecting means is arranged to sort the residual material from several residual rolls depending on the material type, to ensure that residual material inserted into each core is from a single material type to facilitate recycling of the residual material.

The collecting means is preferably configured or arranged to shape the residual material such that it can be easily inserted into the centre portion. The shaping of the residual material produces residual material formed such that it facilitates insertion into the centre portion of the core.

Preferably, the insertion means comprises an elongated member which is insertable into the hollow core portion of the core and which is configured to perform a reciprocal movement.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the invention subject matter will be described in further detail in the following with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate non-limiting examples on how the embodiments can be reduced into practice and in which:

FIG. 1a shows a material carrying roll of a type used in a conversion plant,

FIGS. 1b-1f show on a larger scale how residual material is removed from the roll,

FIGS. 2a-2f show the process and equipment for processing residual rolls, and

FIGS. 3a-3b show transportation alternatives.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

With reference to FIGS. 1a -1 f, a material roll 1 is shown as it moves through the final stages in a material handling process. The material roll 1 comprises material such as tissue or towel or a similar material, wrapped around or wound onto a material-carrying central core 3 in a plurality of layers as a web material roll or sheet material roll. The core 3 has a tubular shape with two opposite open ends, and it has a hollow centre portion 5. The material roll 1 is transported to a refinement plant, or a refinement station if the manufacturing and refinement of the rolls are performed in the same plant. During refinement, the material on the material roll 1 is converted to consumer adapted goods.

For the material to be refined, it is unwound from the material roll. After unwinding, it is common that some residual material 4 remains on the material roll 1. What remains of the material roll 1 is called a residual roll or a butt roll 2, as is shown in FIG. 1 b. For recycling of the residual material 4 and reuse of the core 3, these two items need to be separated and transported to a plant in which recycling of the material 4 is performed and the core 3 is prepared for reuse. Therefore, the next step is to remove the residual material 4 from the core 3. As can be seen in FIG. 1 c, the residual material 4 is cut along the axial direction of the roll 2 such that it can fall off the core 3.

In FIG. 1 d, the residual material 4 has fallen of the core 3 and lies beneath the core 3. FIG. 1e shows the inserting of the residual material 4 into the centre portion 5 of the core 3. The residual material 4 may be shaped prior or during insertion to facilitate insertion. FIG. 1f shows the core 3 with the residual material 4 inside the centre portion 5, whereafter any open ends of the core 3 may be sealed to prevent the residual material 4 from falling out.

FIGS. 2a-2f illustrate the process flow/method in further detail together with an exemplary device according to an embodiment of the invention subject matter.

In FIG. 2a , the residual roll 2 is placed in a residual roll handling device 10 while a residual roll 8 for subsequent processing may is placed in an adjacent storing place for quick access. The first step in the process is removal of the residual material 4 by removing means 6. The residual roll 2 is held by at least one supporting arm 9 inserted in the hollow centre portion 5 of the core 3. During the removal process, the removing means 6 moves reciprocally in an axial direction, from one end to the other, along the residual roll 2. The removing means 6 comprises a knife 11, for instance a rolling knife or a rotary knife, such that the residual material 4 is removed by means of cutting, upon which it falls down and is collected by collecting means 7.

The collecting means 7 is arranged to receive and collect the residual material 4 that falls from the residual roll 2 during the removal process. Thus, it is placed under the roll 2 during removal of the residual material 4 from the core 3. However, as can be seen in FIG. 2b , the collecting means 7 is moveable at least in an axial direction with respect to the residual roll 2 such that it can be moved out of the way when the core 3 is lowered after the removal of the residual material 4. The collecting means 7 is essentially chute shaped with open ends and it extends along the axial direction of the residual roll 2, such that the residual material 4 falls into the chute 7 and towards the bottom or lower part of the chute 7.

The residual material 4 may be transferred from the collecting means 7 into a residual material storage such that it is stored in relation to material type. The transfer of the material may be performed for instance by a conveyor belt or a grapple or by tilting of the collecting means 7 or by inserting means 12. Storing of the residual material 4 can be beneficial if only small amounts of residual material 4 is left on the rolls 2, in which case it might be more time efficient to collect and store enough residual material 4 until a sufficient amount has accumulated to fill a centre portion 5 of a core 3 to a certain extent. It can also be required to store residual material 4 if the amount removed from a roll exceeds an amount which is possible to fit inside the hollow centre portion 5. However, when the amount of residual material 4 that is removed from a core 3 is within an acceptable range and thereby fills a hollow centre portion 5 of the core 3 to a certain degree, no storage is necessary.

Determination of when the amount of residual material 4 exceeds what is possible to fit inside a centre portion 5 can be performed e.g. by the collecting means 7 measuring the weight of the residual material 4 and comparing with a threshold value. Since the residual material 4 will be stored with respect to the present material type, it is still possible to ensure that only one material type is inserted into each core centre portion 5. The residual material 4 can be kept in the collecting means 7 until it has been sufficiently filled upon which insertion occurs.

The inserting of the residual material 4 into the hollow centre portion 5 of the core 3 is shown in FIG. 2c and FIG. 2d . The device 10 is arranged to insert the residual material 4 in a core 3 simultaneously as it collects the subsequent residual roll 8 from the storing place.

The residual material 4 inserted into the centre portion 5 can come from a single residual roll 2 thus ensuring that only one type of residual material 4 is in the core 3. Furthermore, the residual material 4 that is inserted in the centre portion 5 of the core 3 can be the residual material that was previously removed from the core 3.

In a variant, the residual material 4 being inserted into the centre portion 5 of a core 3 is the residual material that has been removed from another core 3, i.e. other than the one the material is inserted into, for instance the from the core 3 processed before or after.

As mentioned above, some residual rolls 2 can have such small amounts of residual material 4 that it is beneficial to only insert material into e.g. every second, third or fourth core 3. Under such circumstances, the removed residual material 4 has to be sorted and stored depending on material type. If it is known that each residual roll 2 in the process line comprises the same material type, then the storing can be performed in the collecting means 7. However, if the material type varies from roll to roll, the collecting means 7 deposits the residual material 4 in a temporary storage depending on material type and inserts it once it has accumulated a sufficient amount such that it can fill a centre portion 5 of a core 3 to a certain extent.

Thus, the residual material 4 that is inserted into the centre portion 5 of a core 3 can come from a plurality of rolls 2 all having previously carried the same material type. The determination that a sufficient amount of residual material has accumulated can be performed by weighing and comparing with a threshold value being the weight of the residual material that fills a hollow centre portion 5 of a core 3. Alternatively, the determination is performed manually by staff monitoring the process.

The residual material 4 is preferably shaped to facilitate the insertion into the hollow centre portion 5 of the core 3. The shaping of the residual material 4 produces an essentially rolled shape or at least a narrower shape of the residual material 4 which is easier to fit inside the core 3. The collecting means 7 may be arranged to shape the residual material 4, and it is provided with at least two portions 71, 72 pivotably connected along the longitudinal direction in the bottom of the collecting means 7 such that the two portions 71, 72 can pivot or fold in relation to one another for shaping of the residual material 4. The collecting means 7 is thereby able to alter its shape, from a wide shape when the portions 71, 72 are folded out that facilitates collecting of the residual material 4 that falls of the core 3, to an essentially cylindrical shape when the portions 71, 72 are folded in that facilitates insertion of the residual material 4 into the centre portion 5 of the core 3 as can be seen in FIG. 2d . When enough material 4 has accumulated in the collecting means 7, the portions 71, 72 pivot or fold such that the collecting means 7 obtains the essentially cylindrical shape with the residual material 4 inside being shaped accordingly. The portions 71, 72 are arranged to leave an upward facing gap along the axial length of the collecting means 7, thus allowing the inserting means 12 to travel in this gap for pushing on the residual material 4 inside.

The collecting means 7 may also be shaped essentially as a chute with a decreasing radius towards the core 3, the smaller end of the chute being arranged to fit inside the centre portion 5 of a core 3. When the residual material 4 moves in the chute 7 towards the core 3, it is shaped by the narrowing shape of the chute and is thus easy to fit inside the core 3. Furthermore, the collecting means 7 can fit inside the centre portion 5 of a core 3 such that it can be brought inside the hollow centre portion 5 with residual material 4 in it and then removed whilst the residual material 4 is kept in place by the inserting means 12 such that it remains in the centre portion 5 while collecting means 7 is removed.

The insertion of the material 4 is further assisted in that one of the open ends of the core 3 can be sealed or at least blocked prior to insertion of the residual material 4. This will prevent that residual material 4 falls out or protrudes through the opening opposite the one used for insertion of the residual material 4. The sealing of one end prior to insertion can be performed by a component of the device for recycling 10, such as a arm (not shown) placing a blocker at the end to be sealed, and then the arm is subsequently removed after insertion of the residual material 4, for reuse on subsequent cores 8. Alternatively, or in combination, the sealing can be performed by providing sealing means 15, e.g. a plastic film or a plug at one end prior to insertion. The plug and/or the plastic film can then remain on the core 3 until the core 3 is emptied for recycling of the residual material 4.

The insertion may be performed by inserting means 12 which is moveable reciprocally in the axial direction of the core 3 to push on one end of the residual material 4 that has fallen down in the means for collecting 7. The inserting means 12 comprises a plate 13 or a flat surface 13 attached to the pushing end of the inserting means 12 such that it is adapted to the surface in collecting means 7 in order to push all of the residual material 4 into the centre portion 5 of the core 3 in one pushing motion. In one variant, the plate 13 has an essentially round shape dimensioned such that it essentially corresponds to the collecting means 7.

Furthermore, the insertion can alternatively or in combination with the inserting means 12 be performed by tilting or leaning of the collecting means 7 such that the residual material 4 simply slides into the hollow centre portion 5 of the core 3.

Another alternative is, as mentioned above, that the collecting means 7 is adapted to fit inside the centre portion 5 of a core 3. In that way, it can be brought inside the centre portion 5 with residual material 4 in it and then removed whilst the residual material 4 is kept in place by the inserting means 12 such that the residual material 4 remains in the centre portion 5 while the collecting means 7 is removed by axial movement of the collecting means 7 in the opposite direction of the inserting motion.

The core 3 with residual material 4 inserted into the centre portion 5 is shown in FIG. 2 e.

In FIG. 2f sealing of the core 3 is shown, and a sealed container 14 is formed which comprises the core 3 with the residual material 4 inside and with the ends sealed by sealing means 15. Any open end of the core 3 is sealed by the sealing means 15, being either a plastic film applied to the end or a plug that can be reused after the core 3 has been emptied.

Hereafter follows a brief description of a typical flow process according to an exemplary embodiment:

As can be seen in FIG. 2a , a residual material roll 2 is placed in a residual roll handling device 10. During the removal process, the removing means 6 moves reciprocally in an axial direction across the residual roll 2. A residual roll 8 for subsequent processing is placed in an adjacent storing place.

In FIG. 2b , the residual material 4 has fallen into and is collected by the collecting means 7 which is moved in an axial direction of the core 3 such that the core 3 can be lowered and placed in front of the collecting means 7.

FIG. 2c and FIG. 2d show the residual material 4 being shaped during or prior to the insertion by the collecting means 7. The end of the core 3 facing away from the residual material 4 is sealed or at least blocked such that the residual material 4 is prevented from being pushed trough the core 3 and for enabling compacting or pressing of the residual material 4 towards the sealed end. The inserting means 12 pushes the residual material 4 into the hollow centre portion 5 simultaneously as the subsequent residual roll 8 is collected from the storing place.

FIG. 2e illustrates the core 3 with the residual material 4 in the hollow centre portion 5.

FIG. 2f shows the sealing of any open end of the core 3 by sealing means 13 in the shape of a plastic film or a plug.

In FIGS. 3a and 3b , the cores 2 are stacked as containers 14, and since the ends are sealed the cores 2 can be easily transported either standing vertically on a pallet or lying down being stacked on top of each other. Thereby, the transport of both the core 3 and the residual material 4 is simplified, which will ensure that a higher percentage of cores 2 will be reused and that more residual material 4 will be recycled.

It should be mentioned that the inventive concept is by no means limited to the embodiments described herein, and several modifications are feasible without departing from the scope of the invention subject matter as defined in the appended claims. For instance, cores of different types can be used. Most cores consist of paper but other materials can be used, for instance plastics or metal. Although the hollow centre of the core most often is cylindrical it can have other cross sections. Furthermore, other types of handling and transportation means can be used. 

1. A method for recycling residual rolls, wherein each residual roll comprising a material-carrying core having a tubular shape with a hollow centre portion, wherein said core is adapted to carry web material which is rolled or wound onto the core for facilitating handling and transportation of said web material, the method comprising the steps of: removing any residual material left on the core after unwinding, collecting the residual material, and inserting collected residual material into the hollow centre portion of the core such that the residual material at least partly fills said hollow centre portion.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising sealing the ends of the core.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the core ends are sealed by application of a plastic film and/or by attaching a plug to each end of the core.
 4. The method of claim 2, wherein one end of the core is sealed prior to insertion of the residual material such that said residual material is inserted from the other end of the core and pressed against the sealed end, and wherein the second end is sealed after insertion of the residual material.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising shaping the residual material such that it is easily inserted into said hollow centre portion.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the residual material being inserted in the hollow centre portion is from a single residual roll.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the residual material is inserted into the hollow centre portion of a core from which it previously was removed.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the residual material inserted into the hollow centre portion of a core has been removed from another core than the one it is inserted into.
 9. The method of claim 1, further comprising sorting the material removed from the core depending on material type.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the residual material being inserted into said hollow centre portion is from a plurality of rolls all having previously carried the same material type.
 11. A residual roll handling device for recycling residual rolls, wherein each residual roll comprises a material-carrying core having a tubular shape with a hollow centre portion, wherein said core is adapted to carry web material which is rolled or wound onto the core for facilitating handling and transportation of said web material, for carrying out the method of claim 1, said device comprising: removing means configured to remove any residual material from the core after unwinding; collecting means configured to collect the removed residual material; and insertion means configured to insert removed and collected residual material into the hollow centre portion of the core, such that it is at least partially filled with residual material.
 12. The device of claim 11, further comprising sealing means configured to seal the ends of the core.
 13. The device of claim 12, wherein said sealing means comprises a plastic film and/or a plug attached to the associated core end.
 14. The device of claim 11, wherein said collecting means is configured to sort the residual material from several residual rolls according to material type to ensure that residual material inserted into each core is from a single material type to facilitate recycling of the residual material.
 15. The device of claim 11, wherein said collecting means is configured to shape the residual material such that it can be easily inserted into the hollow centre portion of a core.
 16. The device of claim 11, wherein said insertion means comprises an elongated member which is insertable into the hollow core portion of the core and which is configured to perform a reciprocal movement.
 17. The method of claim 1, wherein said web material is tissue. 